Review - carnival breeze with the funatics 11/22-12/2/12

[Irishlinny]

OK, that was a workout...let's share a fishbowl Painkiller!

 

Back in Miami

 

You just cannot beat the open aft Lido!

 

[Irishlinny]

END OF CRUISE #1:

I have never done a B2B cruise before, but the general consensus from those who have is that you get walked

off the ship, turn in your Customs form, get a new S&S card, and walk back on. Not so, this time! There were

around 180 of us doing the B2B, and we were told to meet in the Ovation Theater at 9. We sat there for about

an hour while they were trying to get Customs clearance or something. They finally led us off the ship and after

climbing up a very long (not functioning) escalator, we walked a little way and then had to walk back down a long

flight of stairs (huh??). My ailing knees were NOT happy. Then they put us in a room and began giving out our

new S&S cards. Then we sat and sat and SAT! More Customs nonsense I think...who knows. Finally they let us

back on the ship...I think it was close to noon. FAIL. But it was certainly nice to just be able to jump right back

into cruise mode without having to wait for luggage, unpack or figure out the ship!

We spent the first sea day hanging out with assorted Funatics and having a good time.

 

Meeting up with friends who just boarded...aft deck 11...more comfy seats!

 

 

 

Ron Pass' 10th Anniversary with Carnival...some of our group decorated his piano in tin foil (Alex the waiter to the right)

 

Why was Kokomo Man disrobing?!?!

 

 

OK, as Scarlett would say, tomorrow IS another day! Be back as soon as I can with more shenanigans....:D

[Cupcrazy]

Thanks for the review & pictures. Too bad it took so long to get everything figured out for the people doing the B2B. But the best thing is you got a second week on the ship and that's awesome!

[hill6]

Great job Linny.

 

Very odd on the muffins and the other food issues.

 

The door panels on Pride of America are like the ones on the Breeze except they are white. I agree that it definitely adds to the tropical feel.

 

I hope they get the noise issues worked out.

 

Can't wait to read more.

[floatingaway2525]

WOOOHOO!! Lovin' this, Linny!:D Happy reunions are the best!:)

[rhcpchika1]

Fab review! Excited for the rest :)

[scottydog123]

Thanks so much for the quick reply to my questions regarding the balconies. I enjoyed your review and pictures very much

[crewsweeper]

Aahh! Linny! Ya started yesterday and I missed it:( Gettin' caught but though!:) Loved hangin' with you guys! And yer right...Desi and her team were great in the MDR! Best meal/service I had there was when I crashed your table one night:D. Looking forward to the rest! Rum On!

Crew

[PathfinderEss]

Enjoying your review, and love your photo's, thanks.

[JaniceB]

Wonderful start to your B2B review, love the pictures and the details! Can't wait to read more.

[vivavegas]

Loving your review Linny and the pictures too! So much fun to see everthing through another's eyes. Thanks!:)

[Irishlinny]

Thanks all, for the encouragement! It's hard to follow some of our supreme reviewers, but am giving it my best shot. I won't take credit for most of the pics, though...Dave takes most of em because I have Shaky Paw Syndrome! Let me try to get some more posted before some other life thing jumps in front of me!

SEA DAY FUN

Buckets, Bananas & Monkeys, OH MY!

 

 

 

And along came a BEE!

 

Hey! We clean up nice despite a day of shenanigans!

[Irishlinny]

GRAND TURK:

A bunch of us decided to go up to one of my favorite places, Jack's Shack! It's much more relaxed up there

than being near the port and Margaritaville, IMO, but if you love a good crazy party, stay at MVille. Had a great

time hanging out at Jack's (yes there was alcohol involved!), enjoying the beautiful water (the beach there is

much nicer than near the port), and playing with Topher (Jack's awesome clam-digging dog). Jack and his wife,

Janet are great folks...we always have a good time there.

We reluctantly headed back to the port and what a sight awaited us....a line to the ship which went all the way back

to the port area! That was really not fun waiting in line for an hour...no clue what in the world was going on,

but it was NOT pretty! They had 2 entrances open and then finally opened a third. At one point Butch came out

to talk to us and apologize (nice touch). All I could think of was if this was going to be the way it would be

getting back on at all the ports, but thankfully it wasn't anywhere near that bad for the rest of the trip.

Grand Turk from the ship

 

Deb and Topher...Jack's swimming, clam digging dog

 

Topher taking a dip

 

Time to find some clams!

 

The usual suspects...

 

The first time I've seen horses on the beach here!

[Irishlinny]

Nice Cat!

 

Aussie Aussie Aussie!

The HAL ship next to us. Funniest thing...there was a guy on the HAL ship, probably in his early 50's, shouting from their Lido deck to us..."HELP ME! HELP ME! I'm single and stuck on this ship!" Too funny. Poor guy should have done some research on CC before choosing HAL!;):p

 

Look at these adorable little chocolate mice that our friend, Ward, bought for all of us!

[Irishlinny]

That night (Monday) Butch came on the intercom to let us know that we had turned around and had to meet up

with a Coast Guard helicopter to do an emergency evac. This was a first for us. The helicopter arrived a little after

midnite and hovered just off our balcony. We saw it lower a rescuer and then go over the aft Lido. After a bit,

it came back and hovered...wow it was really LOUD! It repeated this process a couple of times and then left...the

whole process was fascinating.

The next morning Butch came on the intercom to let us know the guest had been transported to the hospital and

was getting the care he/she needed...that made us feel good to know they made it there...praying that all went well

afterward. As a result, we would not be going to La Romana that day. It made our group a little sad, as we

had a really good excursion booked with Seavis, but it was far more important that the person got the medical

attention they needed. So we enjoyed another sea day (always fun with a bunch of good friends!), and were told

that instead of arriving in Curacao at 2 the next day, we would be arriving at 9 a.m.!

As a footnote...when we went

to dinner that night, Ken Byrne was talking to our table and told us the poor Guest Services people had been

raked over the coals for 4 hours straight by people complaining and demanding things for missing the port. I

cannot fathom how people can really be that rude and inconsiderate when a person needed urgent medical

attention...it really burns my butt! I am sure they would feel differently if it was a member of their own

family. OK, rant off....

 

 

 

[Irishlinny]

Bonus Sea Day...Red Frog, here we come

 

 

The hot tubs are a good size!

 

Yet they're all smooshed together! (Poor lady in blue probably was sorry she ever got in there! LOL!)

 

Our fearless leader loves to dance with the waiters!

 

This little girl was ADORABLE and ended up being the star of the show every night after this!

[FreezingInMichigan]

Linny,

 

Great review as always! :)

 

~ Sheryl

[Sandgnat]

Great review! Sure wish we could of joined you but my cousin got married Dec. 1. We are going on the Breeze Feb. 2, to take some of Dad's ashes one year from the day we lost him, and to celebrate my sister's 21st anniversary of her 29th birthday. Her husband will be 55 on the same day, Feb. 9th. Sounds like we will love this ship.

[kerrytens]

Keep up the great work Linny! Lovin' it:D

[Irishlinny]

Linny,

 

Great review as always! :)

 

~ Sheryl

Thanks, Sheryl! We loved her much better than the Freedom! You and Chuck will have to check her out!

Great review! Sure wish we could of joined you but my cousin got married Dec. 1. We are going on the Breeze Feb. 2, to take some of Dad's ashes one year from the day we lost him, and to celebrate my sister's 21st anniversary of her 29th birthday. Her husband will be 55 on the same day, Feb. 9th. Sounds like we will love this ship.

Wish you could have joined us, too. You will love her...and what better way to remember your Dad. I plan to do the same with my Mom's ashes. Hope married life is treating you well!:)

[Irishlinny]

Keep up the great work Linny! Lovin' it:D

Mir, you're such a good audience!:)

[Irishlinny]

OK, soldiering on to Curacao!

CURACAO:

We had not really made any big plans for this port, as we were getting in mid-afternoon. We had just planned

to wander about and see the sights near the port. Had we known we would be there from 9 am until 11 pm, we

could have made some great plans!

We didn't rush to get off the ship. When we did, we headed over to Rif Fort,

which is a very cool old fort which has been converted to some shops and restaurants with a huge courtyard in

the middle. From there, we passed by a row of little souvenir stands along the road which leads to the Floating

Bridge...decided to save purchases for the way back. The Floating Bridge is very unique....it floats (obviously) and

has engines attached to it that move it out of the way when a ship needs to come through. Our very own

Kokomo Man was on the bridge when it started moving...and he was snapping pics all the while.

When we reached

the other side of the bridge, we opted to take an open air taxi/bus/truck for a tour. We went by the Floating

Market, took a tour of the Curacao distillery (with yummy free shots!), and saw quite a few different types

of neighborhoods. Stopped at a gift shop which had gorgeous views and then headed to a very nice beach club

for about a half hour. We were given the option to stay and be picked up later, but none of our friends were

staying so we headed back. It was a good tour...the guy narrating spoke a number of different languages, so he

did the whole thing in English and Spanish...he had a good sense of humor, too, so it was fun. I realized afterward

that I never got the name of the company...one of many DUH moments for me.

I really enjoyed the island...the

architecture is beautiful and the people are very warm and friendly!

When we got dropped off, we decided to head back to the ship...it was enough walking for me. Some of our

folks headed back out later in the day, dressed in an assortment of Christmas adornments to be in the spirit of

the island's celebration of Christmas. It was a beautiful night with a full moon...there was actually more than

one, but that is not fit for prime time!:eek:

Sailing in

 

Port area

 

 

 

Very cool pool at a nearby resort...I forgot the name (stinks getting old!)...maybe one of our readers will remember!

 

[Irishlinny]

Really didn't expect to see a Denny's here!

 

We love hummingbirds!

 

Heading toward RIF Fort...some little shops & condos along the way

 

Outside Rif

 

 

Inside the courtyard

[Irishlinny]

 

Cool Steve and Christmas decorations

 

Loved these little "shops" on the way to Floating Bridge...so NOT Diamonds International! And there were steel drums to boot!

 

Floating Bridge

 

Where's Whale Tail?

 

The pontoons of the bridge...and don't ya just love the colors of the buildings?!

[Irishlinny]

Other side of the bridge

 

There's Kokomo Man (orange shirt) snapping pics as the bridge moved away

 

Not a great shot of the Floating Market...we were moving too fast. Mainly fruits and veggies, but other items as well

 

Such interesting architecture!

 

 

Cheers! Yummy shots!